No. 1 Tide takes dive as Garcia, Lattimore lift South Carolina

COLUMBIA, S.C. – After delivering South Carolina’s biggest win, all coach Steve Spurrier could do was smile.

“I think that this game was meant to be,” he said.

The way the Gamecocks played, it sure seemed like it.

Stephen Garcia threw three touchdown passes, two to Alshon Jeffrey, and Marcus Lattimore scored three times as 19th-ranked South Carolina stunned No. 1 Alabama 35-21 on Saturday.

Never before had the Gamecocks beaten a team ranked No. 1 – at least not in football. So Spurrier had plenty of reason to bask in one of the biggest victories of his illustrious career.

When Spurrier arrived at South Carolina (4-1, 2-1) from the Washington Redskins, expectations in Columbia soared. He had dominated the SEC and led Florida to a national championship in 1996 before trying out the NFL.

South Carolina has been solid under Spurrier, but still hasn’t won the SEC East – and never come close. This bunch of Gamecocks might change that with a winning mix of dynamic skill players and dominating defenders that could keep them in the title chase all season.

“I said ‘Fellas, if fate means for us to win this game Saturday then let’s give it a chance. Let’s give fate a chance to happen,’ ” Spurrier said.

Opponents have had little chance against Alabama the past few seasons.

The defending national champions had won 19 straight games – including last week’s 31-6 rout of Florida – since losing the Sugar Bowl to Utah after the 2008 season.

But facing a third consecutive ranked SEC team caught up with Alabama as Garcia and the Gamecocks used the Crimson Tide’s formula for success – cashing in on chances close to the goal line and limiting the country’s best tailback duo in Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson to 64 yards.

South Carolina shredded the country’s top-rated scoring defense, putting up the most points on Alabama (5-1, 2-1) since a 41-34 loss to LSU in 2007. The Gamecocks scored four touchdowns when they got inside the ’Bama 20 – double what the Crimson Tide had allowed coming in.

“It’s not like we just lost. They beat us,” said Alabama coach Nick Saban, now 1-3 against Spurrier. “They outexecuted us. They played better than we played. They played with more intensity. They played physical.”

Saban said he wants the Tide to remember this should they run into the Gamecocks for the SEC championship game.